Manual control re-engagement in an autonomous vehicle

Abstract

Vehicles may have the capability to navigate according to various levels of autonomous capabilities, the vehicle having a different set of autonomous competencies at each level. In certain situations, the vehicle may shift from one level of autonomous capability to another. The shift may require more or less driving responsibility from a human operator. Sensors inside the vehicle collect human operator parameters to determine an alertness level of the human operator. An alertness level is determined based on the human operator parameters and other data including historical data or human operator-specific data. Notifications are presented to the user based on the determined alertness level that are more or less intrusive based on the alertness level of the human operator and on the urgency of an impending change to autonomous capabilities. Notifications may be tailored to specific human operators based on human operator preference and historical performance.

What is claimed: 
     
       1. A method of requesting engagement of manual control in a vehicle, the method comprising:
 identifying a human operator of the vehicle, the human operator being associated with a driving capability profile; 
 determine human operator parameters associated with the human operator of the vehicle; 
 determining an alertness level of the human operator based on the human operator parameters and the driving capability profile; 
 receiving an indication to transfer control of the vehicle to the human operator; 
 displaying a manual control request notification to the human operator, the manual control request notification communicating a request for manual control, the manual control request notification further being based on the determined alertness level; and 
 transferring control of the vehicle to the human operator if the human operator accepts the request for manual control. 
 
     
     
       2. The method of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 displaying a second manual control request notification to the human operator if the human operator does not accept the request for manual control, the second manual request notification being different than the manual control request notification. 
 
     
     
       3. The method of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 receiving a hazard indication of a road hazard near a route of the autonomous vehicle, and wherein the manual control notification is based at least in part on the hazard indication. 
 
     
     
       4. The method of  claim 1 , wherein the sensing operation includes facial analysis of the human operator. 
     
     
       5. The method of  claim 1 , wherein the sensing operation includes a sensed heart rate of the human operator. 
     
     
       6. The method of  claim 1 , wherein the determining operation includes body posture and body location of the human operator. 
     
     
       7. The method of  claim 1 , wherein the displaying operation depends at least in part on a baseline responsiveness level of the human operator, the baseline responsiveness level having been determined before the displaying operation. 
     
     
       8. The method of  claim 1 , wherein accepting the request for manual control includes the human operator being physically in contact with a steering wheel.